As Long as We're Together
by Asparagus Altar-Ego
Summary: Sequel to "You Never Spend Any Time With Me" so you should read that first.  Ruto's model ship turns out to be magical and takes Link and Ruto on an adventure.  Once again it's up to Link to save the day, this time with Ruto's help.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is the sequel to _You Never Spend Any Time With Me_ so you should read that first. I wasn't originally going to do any more with the storyline, but one of my reviewers (you know who you are!) suggested that the boat be magical so that Ruto and Link could explore the world. Thanks for the idea! I'll try my best to run with it. This is going to be my second chaptered fic, and I'm going to try really hard to be way better about updating then last time. Anyways, I hope you like it! Please let me know what you think, whether something is good or needs to be improved I always like to know.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, or any of the other Zelda games for that matter. Ruto and Link are not my creations, but I can take credit for Kyoudai Ryuou.

* * *

**As Long as We're Together**

_Asparagus Altar-Ego_

Part One

* * *

The little red model ship bobbed on the gentle waves in Zora's domain. It floated further out into the deep water, and, with a laugh, Ruto chased after it.

"Come on Link," Ruto called.

Link hurried to follow, but he didn't catch up to her until the boat stopped moving, Ruto was a faster swimmer than he was.

"It sails pretty good, huh?"

Link nodded, although it was a little difficult to do while treading water. His green clothes were darkened by the water that soaked them, and where his blond hair hit the water it too took on a darker, water-logged hue.

Ruto smiled at him, her back was to the little red model ship, which she'd told Link was called The King of Red Lions, so she didn't see when the ship began to grow. It had started out the size of Link's head, but in a matter of moments grew to the size of a sailboat.

Hearing Link's gasp of surprise, Ruto spun around, purple eyes widening in shock, "Link! It's gotten bigger! How...?"

Link shook his head.

"You don't know?" Ruto asked, "But you were looking right at it?"

Link tried to shrug but just ended up with a mouth full of water. He coughed.

"It's really more of a boat now then a ship isn't it..." Ruto shook her head, "Whatever. Let's check it out. You first."

Link didn't really appreciate being ordered around, but he was curious too, so he swam forward and clambered onto the boat. He stood unsteadily on the deck, before falling over.

"Link!" Ruto gasped.

He raised one hand above the side of the boat and made a thumbs up gesture.

Ruto glared at the boat, "Hmmph. Stupid boy, making me worry." She swam forward and slid gracefully onto the boat. She looked around, putting her hands on slender blue hips, "Well, this is nice." She glanced at Link, who was laying awkwardly in the bottom of the ship. She walked gracefully along the deck to stand in the front of the boat.

"This is really nice." Ruto commented, "We could go all sorts of places in this."

Link nodded. A boat was much more useful than a model ship, even if playing with the model ship had been fun.

"Only..." Ruto spun slowly, looking around at the enclosed cavern of Zora's domain, "How will we get it out of here?"

Standing up cautiously, Link thought about that. Unless the boat would shrink again, it would be awfully hard to get out of the cavern. Obviously it couldn't go via underwater routes, and Link didn't think he could carry it over land by himself. Maybe if Ruto helped... No, not even then.

Suddenly the boat shook underneath them.

"Whoa!" Link yelped, tumbling back into the bottom of the boat.

"What's happening?" Ruto cried as she clutched the side of the boat desperately. A blue light started to surround the boat, and it occurred to Link that it might be a good idea to abandon ship. He crawled forward towards Ruto intending to pull her off with him, but, like always seemed to happen in this sort of situation, he was too slow. There was a blinding flash of blue light, and when his vision cleared, they were no longer in Zora's domain.

"Where are we?" the knuckles on Ruto's blue hands were white from clinging to the side of the boat.

Link shrugged, but since Ruto was looking around and not at him she didn't see his response.

"You know, things would be easier if you'd just talk," Ruto observed, "next time I ask you a question please respond." This time she looked at him to see his reaction.

Link shook his head.

Ruto snorted in a rather un-princess-like manner. "You know, since we're engaged, you need to learn to say something sometimes. I'm fine with making all the decisions and everything, but really, I've hardly ever heard you speak." She looked around again, before looking back at him, "Seriously, where are we?"

Link looked around. They were in the middle of a lake, in the distance he could see buildings, but they were too far off for him to make out what they looked like. Surrounding them were three rock spires of varying heights which protruded from the water's depths. The breeze was cold, and the trees he could see all had brightly colored autumn leaves. It didn't look like anywhere he'd been before, and the last time Link checked it was summer.

He shrugged.

Ruto hissed in irritation. "Can't you just say I don't know?"

Link shrugged again, smirking at her.

She stomped her foot, apparently forgetting that they were in a boat, "You're doing this on purpose!"

He laughed.

"This situation is not funny, we have no idea where we are and..." she trailed off, mouth hanging open in shock, eyes fixated on something behind him.

Slowly, Link scooted until he was turned around. A rather large serpent was looking at them, its head raised on a long thin neck as it examined them. Link gulped, he really didn't want to fight a giant serpent armed only with the Kokiri sword and a slingshot while standing in a small, rather unreliable red boat.

The serpent tilted it's whiskered gray-blue head to one side as if studying them. Glancing down at the water, Link could see the shadow of its long body under the water.

Ruto found her voice again then, "Link!" She hissed, "It's a water dragon."

"What?" He hissed back.

Ruto allowed herself to gloat a moment because she'd gotten him to speak, before she addressed the dragon, "What do you want dragon?"

Link gave her a look that said he thought she was crazy—dragons were dangerous! They ate Gorons and all kinds of terrible stuff.

"I'm sorry to have brought you here so unexpectedly," the dragons voice was low and rich when it spoke, "but I need your help."

Ruto leaned over and hissed to Link, "Maybe Lord Jabu Jabu told him we were good at taking care of problems."

Link rolled his eyes. Why was it always him?

Ruto punched him in the arm, "Hey, don't worry. As long as we're together we can take care of anything."

Link frowned, sure, he'd do whatever it took, but he really hoped he wouldn't have to carry Ruto on his head while doing it this time.

"A great evil has swept across this land," the dragon told them, "the people have struggled to turn it back, but I fear it is in vain. I, Kyoudai Ryuou, cannot help them, for the evil has passed beyond my reach. You must help them, Hero of Time, to vanquish this evil."

Link nodded once. That was usually all it took to get people to tell him more, but Kyoudai Ryuou, Link decided to think of him as Kyou, just looked at him expectantly. Apparently he wasn't going to tell them anything else. Link sighed, Kyou had to know more than what he'd just said. What kind of evil? Where exactly? What did he need to do?

Link stood up carefully and looked into Kyou's swirling blue eyes, "Tell me more."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Fastest ever update on a chaptered fic (for me, not for other people obviously)! Anyways, it's part two. It's a little shorter than part one, but it just kind of split well at this point, so... Yeah. Link and Ruto get to find out a little more about where they are and why they're there. I hope you like it, please let me know what you think! You're comments help me to improve my writing. Thank you!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, or any of the other Zelda games for that matter. Ruto and Link are not my creations, but I can take credit for Kyoudai Ryuou and a few other things.

**

* * *

As Long as We're Together**

_Asparagus Altar-Ego_

Part Two

* * *

"Where to begin is rather difficult," Kyou murmured. He tilted his great head thoughtfully, "Ikari, a demon from the north, is the source of this evil. He has taken on a human form, but in his natural form he is 10 feet tall, has long horns like a cow, sharp claws, long fangs, and the tail of a tiger. In the human form he has adopted he wears a long, flowing black cape with a hood. He always wears the cowl pulled forward to hide his face, possibly because even in his human form his long fangs remain, I do not know for certain, but under his cloak he may still have the tail of a tiger. He carries an iron rod that he uses both for melee combat and for magic, it is his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. Without the iron rod, Ikari is merely a rather large man with sharp claws and horns, still dangerous but not half as much. If you can take his rod, you stand a chance of defeating him."

The dragon tilted his head back the other direction, "Hmm, what else should I tell you, Hero of Time?"

Most of the time Link preferred not to talk, but between Kyou and Ruto it looked like he'd have to start getting used to it. "Where is he then?"

"That I do not know. Last I knew he was heading down river from here, this lake is the source of a river you know, if my guess is correct, Ikari will continue to cover the countryside before entering Hyrule Castle and Town from the North."

"We could go wait for him there," Ruto suggested.

Link shook his head, "We can't wait for that. We have to head him off as soon as possible."

"He is right," Kyou agreed, "there is little time. The land grows darker every day and I fear that Ikari only grows stronger."

Link tried to think, how would they find Ikari if Kyou didn't know exactly where to start looking? Usually he got better instructions than this. "Well, what about those people who were trying to stop him?"

"Yeah," Ruto jumped on that idea, "we should get them to help!"

"I do not know how much help they can be to you..." Kyou began.

"Quit being pessimistic," Ruto commanded.

Kyou ignored her, "but I will tell you who they are and, if I it is within my knowledge, where to find them. Inya would be the most helpful to you, but I fear she is also the most difficult to find since I do not know her whereabouts. Still, if you ask around you may be able to locate her. The other person I can recommend to you is Nico. Last I knew he was to the southwest, at Kolia Village. You can get there by heading up one of the streams that feeds this river. It is not far from here, and you will know it when you see it because there is a statue of the King that stands not far from where the stream meets the river."

"Okay." Ruto agreed.

Link, however, looked around them thoughtfully, "Wait! You said this Ikari will be entering Hyrule Castle town from the north... So he'll have to go by the castle itself... I've never been that far north, where are we?"

"You are in Lake Lilinta, the source of the Lilinta River which flows south towards Hyrule Castle Town before turning southeast and flowing past Death Mountain."

Link frowned, mentally marking their location, "And... What about the time? It looks like autumn here now, it was summer just this morning."

"The time is the same as it was when you left Zora's Domain." Kyou reassured him, "One of the visible effects Ikari has had on the land is an early autumn, and I fear it will lead to a hard winter. Also, be wary when you are outdoors at night, as monsters will appear once the sun sets."

"Like the stalchildren that appeared after nightfall," Link murmured.

"Precisely."

Ruto looked at Link with a confused expression, "What?"

"Like monsters appeared inside Lord Jabu Jabu, monsters appeared other places as well," Link explained, "In Hyrule field after nightfall stalchildren would come out. They're like these skeleton creatures."

Ruto's eyes widened slightly, "Oh."

"Anything else?" Link turned back to the water dragon.

"No, I'm afraid that is all the advice I can give you. Although, I will tell you that should you have to leave water, you can return your boat to its original size simply by telling it to shrink." Kyou offered.

"Okay then, Ruto, let's go."

Ruto frowned and crossed her arms, "It's my ship, I get to decide when we go."

Link rolled his eyes, "It's really more of a boat..."

"Shut up!"

"Okay," the blond boy sighed, "can we go now, Ruto?"

Ruto looked at him haughtily for a moment, before sitting down on the deck of the boat, "Yes. We can go now."

Link looked around thoughtfully, "Okay, now how do we work this thing?"

Ruto snorted, "I guess I'll have to do everything just like last time."

"Who was the one who had to carry you on his head?" Link demanded.

Ruto ignored him, "First you..." She began to explain how to raise and lower the sail and how to steer. Link listened carefully because he didn't want to have to ask her to repeat the explanation. "You get all that?" She asked.

Link nodded.

"Okay, let's find this Nico guy." Ruto declared. "Set sail for Kolia Village!"


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Part three is here. It took a little longer than the last one. It's a little longer, but not that much. Really, it's just that the serious homework season has hit. I'm slowed down by the sheer volume, but I'll try to keep pushing forward. Anyways... I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, or any of the other Zelda games for that matter, while I have a copy but... Whatever. I don't own the concepts. Ruto and Link are not my creations, but my ideas do belong to me.

* * *

**As Long as We're Together**

_Asparagus Altar-Ego_

Part Three

* * *

Ruto sighed. "You know when that water dragon said where Kolia Village was, for some reason I thought it would be a lot closer."

Link shrugged.

Ruto was laying in the back of the boat, sprawled so that she could rest her elbows on the edge and look down into the water, "We've been sailing all afternoon and I haven't even seen a connecting stream."

Link, who was also staring off into the water, just in a different direction, shrugged again.

"You listening?"

Link sighed, realizing that she wasn't looking at him, "Yes. But, he didn't say how far it actually was, and we only just got off the lake."

Ruto grimaced, "Yeah, that lake must be three times the size of Lake Hylia!"

Link laughed, "I don't think it was that big."

Ruto rolled over to look at him, "Say, how are we supposed to know which stream to turn up anyways? There could be a lot of streams that connect to this river."

"Oh," Link said, "I didn't think of that. Maybe there will be a sign?"

"Why would there be a sign?" Ruto teased, "It's a river not a road."

Staring down at the river's calm surface and the reflection of his own thin face, Link muttered, "But there's always a sign."

Ruto looked at him thoughtfully, "Are you mad? Cause you shouldn't be. I'm sure we'll find it even if there isn't a sign, and if there is it will be really easy. Whatever the case, since it's the two of us I'm certain that nothing can stop us."

Link smiled, "And you did want us to spend more time together."

Ruto walked over to sit next to him, "Yeah, exactly. Since we're engaged we have to get used to being around each other all the time. Oh, and you should always do what I say."

Since Link had no idea what being 'engaged' was about, he didn't know if Ruto was making it up or not. He hoped she was, he really got sick of being told what to do all the time. And what if she told him to carry her around on his head again? That would be so annoying. Still, maybe it was best not to mention it at all. The Zora princess had been surprisingly undemanding since they'd started this journey, and he didn't want to make her angry.

Listening to Ruto ramble about the intricacies of being engaged, Link felt his eyes getting heavy. Before he knew it he was waking up to the howl of wind and Ruto shrieking.

"What?" Link sleepily rubbed his eyes. Suddenly he sat up, realizing very suddenly that the wind was raging and rain was pelting down like tiny bullets.

"We need to take down the sail!" Ruto was yelling, "It's too windy!"

Link staggered to his feet, struggling to maintain his balance in the now not-so-stable boat. He staggered toward the sail, but was too slow. There was the loud sound of something breaking, and all of the sudden the heavy cloth of the sail fell down on them.

"Ow!" Ruto cried. Link agreed.

"Well, the sail is down now." Link replied after he'd gotten his wind back.

"I feel like I'm being crushed." Ruto retorted.

Concerned, Link asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," the tone of Ruto's voice was whiney, "just kind of mad."

"Oh."

Amongst the sound of the rain lashing onto the sail that covered them was a sound that sounded strangely like a child laughing.

"What's that?" Ruto hissed.

Link shrugged.

"I can't see you, you know."

Link mentally smacked himself, although he wondered how she knew he was gesturing if she really couldn't see him, "Right. I have no idea what it is."

They both fell silent listening intently. The sound came again.

"Was that a giggle?" Ruto whispered.

Link hissed back, "Yeah, that's what it sounded like." There was another giggle, followed by a splash, as if something had fallen off their boat.

"Oh no," Ruto moaned, "what did we lose?"

Link snickered, "Not the sail."

"I had no idea you could be so annoying." Ruto said, although the giggle she stifled betrayed the fact that she wasn't really annoyed. Giving in, she allowed herself to giggle quietly, "Quick, let's get out from under this sail and see what it is."

"Okay, on the count of three," Link hissed.

"Right," Ruto responded, "I'll count, you jump out. I'll be right behind you."

Link rolled his eyes, "Sure."

Ruto took a deep breath, "1... 2... 3!"

Link sprung out, and, true to her word, Ruto was right behind him. He stopped rather suddenly, however, with a puzzled look on his face. So suddenly, in fact, that Ruto ran into him.

"Oof!" She said. "Why'd you stop?"

Link merely pointed. Ruto looked around his shoulder. There was a little black haired boy, he was definitely much younger than either of them, sitting on the edge of their boat. He was completely soaked, and rather muddy as well, but he was grinning happily.

"What are you doing on our boat?" Ruto asked.

He grinned at them, flapping one muddy arm happily, "Just playing."

Ruto stared incredulously, "Playing?"

He nodded, wet hair smacking against his forehead, and gestured at the storm around them. "I like playing in the rain."

"You're dirty." Ruto said, "I can't even tell what color your clothes are supposed to be."

Link decided he better take over. Maybe this kid knew how to find Kolia village, it was best not to try and upset him, "I'm Link, what's your name?"

The little boy laughed, swinging his feet and spraying Ruto with bits of mud, "I don't have a name."

Ruto wiped a bit of mud from her cheek, Link didn't know why she bothered, they were all soaked and nasty from the rain anyway. "You don't have a name?" She said incredulously.

The little boy laughed again, "I don't need one. I just play in the rain."

"What do you do when it's not raining?" Ruto wondered.

He shrugged, "Who knows. If it's not raining, I'm not here."

"Huh?" Ruto was completely bamboozled.

"So you only come out when it rains?" Link asked, "Like poes only come out at night?"

The little boy nodded happily, "Exactly."

Ruto looked confused, "So, what, you're a spirit that plays in the rain?"

The muddy boy shrugged nonchalantly, "I guess so. Do you wanna play?"

Ignoring him, the Zora princess inquired, "Do you know what fell off our boat?"

He laughed really hard then, almost tipping over the edge, but managed to stabilize himself with one muddy hand, "Me."

"What?"

"I fell off." He grinned sillily at them.

Ruto shook her head, "You're funny."

He shrugged, "Play with me?"

She sighed, "What do you think, Link?"

Normally, Link wasn't very interested in playing. Well, he was, but he never had time for it. However, with the wind lashing the rain around them, there really was no way they could get the sail back up right now. And if they couldn't get the sail up they couldn't go anywhere. It wouldn't hurt to have a little fun while they waited, otherwise with this storm the waiting would be absolutely miserable. He made a decision.

"Sure, why not."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Part four is here. It took a while, but really I am going to finish this fic someday, honest! I've just been kind of brain-dead. Anyways... I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, or any of the other Zelda games for that matter, while I have a copy but... Whatever. I don't own the concepts. Ruto and Link are not my creations, but my ideas do belong to me.

* * *

**As Long as We're Together**

_Asparagus Altar-Ego_

Part Four

* * *

"Come on!" The little rain boy urged, "Let's jump off the boat, that's fun."

Ruto nodded, "If it involves swimming it has to be fun."

Link, however, shook his head, "We can't just leave the boat unattended in the middle of a storm."

Ruto poked him, "Don't be a spoilsport."

Narrowing his eyes stubbornly, Link insisted, "Someone has to stay in the boat."

"Fine, how about we shrink the boat, then you can carry it with you since you're so worried." Ruto retorted, "Now, how did that dragon say we could shrink it again? Oh yeah, just tell it to shrink." She looked down at the boat, "Shrink!" She commanded.

Nothing happened.

"Maybe if you use it's name?" Link suggested, "What was it's name again?"

"The King of Red Lions," Ruto said, "like the King of Hyrule, remember?"

"Right," Link looked down at the boat, "King of Red Lions, shrink!" The boat shuddered violently and began to reduce in size.

"Quick!" Ruto cried, "Jump off!" She leaped from the boat into the river. Laughing, the little rain boy jumped after her.

Link frowned, how would he hold onto the boat when it shrunk if he just jumped off? He decided to stay, attempting to adjust his position as the boat's size got smaller and smaller so that maybe he'd be able to hold onto it when it finished shrinking.

He struggled to maintain his balance as the boat got smaller and smaller, finally he slipped off and lay with his arms around the toy boat. "I got it!" He managed to say before water got in his mouth. He struggled against the river's storm whipped current, "Ruto!" Link managed to cry out before his head disappeared below the water. A moment later he resurfaced, arms and legs churning desperately.

Noticing his distress, Ruto swam over and grabbed him by the shirt, "I've got you." She pulled him to the bank of the river, depositing him in the mud.

"You didn't have any trouble with the river at all?" Link asked.

Ruto shook her head, "Zora, remember? I'm a much better swimmer than you'll ever be."

"Where's the rain kid?" Link wondered.

Spraying water and mud everywhere, the little boy popped up onto the riverbank beside him, "Here I am!" He jumped to his feet, "Come on! It's gotten all muddy, I love that!"

They splashed through the mud, it was fun for awhile. Eventually, however, Link started to get cold, and his boots started to rub. He sat down miserably on a rock, "I'm gonna get blisters..."

"That's why I don't wear shoes," Ruto said.

Link sighed, then having a thought he turned to look at the rain boy, "Say, do you have any idea how to get Kolia Village?"

The little boy sat down in the mud next to him, "Hmm, Kolia Village... I think I've been there before, but I'm not sure how to get there. I just follow the rain." He tugged his dripping black hair, "Hmm... Maybe it's..." He pointed in front of him in a direction they hadn't yet been, "that way!" He leaped to his feet, "You wanna try and find it? Let's go!" He ran off in the direction he'd pointed, laughing and splashing mud as he went.

Setting his mouth in a determined line, Link climbed to his feet to follow.

"Won't you get worse blisters if you run after him?" Ruto looked concerned.

"Probably," Link replied, "but we have to find that village."

Ruto nodded, "Okay, let's go."

"You guys coming?" The little rain boy yelled.

"Yes!"

They followed the rain child splashing and leaping across the countryside for what seemed like hours. Just as Ruto began to think she couldn't run anymore, Link pointed to the horizon, "Look! Buildings!"

"Maybe that's the village," she panted. "Hey, rain kid! Let's rest here a little bit."

"Okay," the rain kid agreed, coming back and flopping in a small mud puddle. Rolling around a little bit and splashing, he giggled. "You guys are interesting. Usually I have to play alone."

Sitting on the ground as well, Link and Ruto watched the rain boy roll about.

"Say," Ruto observed, "isn't the rain letting up?"

The little rain boy stopped rolling around and looked up at the sky, "Aw... You're right. Soon I'll have to go away."

Ruto looked genuinely sad, "We'll miss you."

"Yeah, you've been a lot of help."

The little rain boy shrugged, "It's just the way it is. Maybe I'll see you next time it rains on you."

"Yeah." Link agreed.

The rain fell ever more gently until there were just spattering drops falling here and there.

"I guess this is goodbye," the rain boy said.

"Bye!" Ruto and Link waved as the little rain boy faded away with a cheeky grin on his face.

"Well," Ruto said to Link, "should we go into that village and find whoever it was we were supposed to find?"

"Nico. We're supposed to find a guy named Nico. In Kolia Village, if this is in fact Kolia Village." Link supplied.

"Let's go then." Ruto proclaimed, "Help me up!"

Link stood and obediently offered a hand to Ruto. With the little toy ship tucked under his arm, they set their faces towards the village and the gray skyline.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Sorry it's taken so long to update... Life just got kind of insane for some reason, and then when I finally got back to this it was like, "Wait... where was I?" and my train of thought was all de-railed. Anyways, I finally got my brain back on track, so here's Part Five! I love getting opinions, if you have any to give.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, or Ruto or Link, or anything like that.

* * *

**As Long as We're Together**

_Asparagus Altar-Ego_

Part Five

* * *

Kolia Village was one of the dampest, dreariest villages Link had ever seen. The houses were all made out of rough gray stone pieces, mortared together with thatched roofs, some of which appeared to be molding. Although it was no longer raining, the air was thick and heavy feeling, as well as being unpleasantly chilly. What few people were out and about kept their heads down and hurried by. Link told himself it was just that they wanted to get inside out of the cold and damp, and not that they were unfriendly.

Actually, he was surprised there wasn't anyone staring at them. Ruto was rather different, it wasn't everyday that you saw a Zora so far from Zora's domain.

"How are we supposed to find this Nico guy?" Ruto asked, shivering as a cold breeze swept down the street.

"Ask around," Link advised, "someone should know where he is."

Ruto glanced around the nearly deserted, gloomy streets, "Ask who?"

Link frowned, "Good question. Let's keep looking around, we'll find somebody."

They continued down the damp streets. The slapping of Ruto's bare feet as she walked, and the uneven squishing of Link's boots as he limped (he really had gotten blisters) broke the gloomy quiet as they wended their way down narrow streets and even narrower alleys.

"Look!" Ruto pointed to a door that had a warm yellow glow seeping out from under it along with the faint sounds of conversation. "Let's go in there and warm up. Maybe they'll know about that Nico guy.'

Link squinted at the faded, crumbling sign by the door, "The Green Inn and Tavern... What's an 'Inn and Tavern?'"

Ruto shrugged, "Who cares, let's just go in."

"Ill go in first," Link insisted, "just in case."

"Aw, are you worried about me? You're such a good fiancé. Go ahead, I'll be right behind you." Ruto patted Link's damp shoulders.

Silently reassuring himself that an 'Inn and Tavern' couldn't possibly be something bad, Link pushed open the door and let light spill out onto the street.

Inside were several tables, around which several people were sitting. There was a counter, which reassured Link because most shops had counters, and there was a tall woman standing behind it with her back to them.

"Come in," she called, turning to face them. Obediently, Link and Ruto approached the counter. Her brows came together in puzzlement, "Well, um, this isn't really a kids establishment but what can I do for you?"

"Um..." Link began.

"It's cold and wet outside!" Ruto declared, shoving in front of Link, "We just wanted to warm up."

"Is that so? Well, why don't you just sit down for a few minutes then. The fires roaring, and there's plenty of space." The woman agreed amiably.

Ruto turned and hurried over to a table by the fire and sat down, "Come on, Link."

Link, however, remained standing at the counter, "And, uh..."

"Yes?" The woman asked.

"Do you know where we can find Nico?"

Before the woman could answer, an old man seated near the fire, and consequently near Ruto, spoke up, "More people looking for Nico?" He leaned forward in his chair and scrutinized them with beady eyes.

The woman behind the counter shook her head, "They're just a couple of kids, no harm telling them."

"I don't know, supposing they run into that tall cloaked stranger that was asking about Nico earlier?" The old man retorted.

"Tall cloaked stranger?" Link asked, could the demon Ikari be here? They needed to hurry. "Really, do you know where we can find Nico? It's urgent."

"What could possibly be that urgent for a kid and a little blue girl?" The old man groused.

Ruto shot him a glare, "I am not a 'little blue girl' I am Ruto, Pri..."

"Ruto, not now. We don't have time to argue with him," Link interrupted before Ruto could start spewing her identity and family history or something.

"Well, no harm in it, I guess," the woman behind the counter said, "Nico's home is outside of town a little ways. If you take a left on the street out here and keep going, eventually you'll see a narrow path that leads down to the river."

"Okay, thanks." Link turned away from the counter, "Come on Ruto, let's go."

"But I haven't warmed up yet! It's cold out there!" Ruto protested, "Besides, you're not supposed to tell me what to do, I'm a princess, you're just my fiancé" The woman behind the counter raised an eyebrow.

Link tried not to roll his eyes, "I could carry you on my head again." The woman behind the counter appeared to be resisting the urge to chuckle.

Ruto stuck out her tongue, "I'm staying here."

"I really think we should stick together, and if that cloaked guy is who I think he is, we don't have much time." Link attempted to persuade her.

Ruto sighed, "Fine. Lead on." Shaking her head, and chuckling quietly, the woman behind the counter watched them go.

Once again out on the cold dreary streets, Link turned to the left and started limping down the path, "Let's go."

Ruto sighed, but followed him, "Why are you so stubborn? It's cold, and wet, and you've got blisters."

Link said nothing, and Ruto fell quiet. They passed by rows of shabby, gray buildings, until slowly the buildings began to thin and they were walking among weedy fields. Up ahead, Link saw a narrow path leading off to the right. Thin trees surrounded it, and it appeared to disappear rather quickly.

Walking up to the head of the path they stopped and looked down. The path was indeed very narrow, but also very steep. The river lay in the center of a small plain, some twenty feet below them. Downstream there was a small rickety house, with smoke coming out of its chimney.

"She wasn't kidding when she said it went down to the river, was she?" Ruto asked, a hint of resignation in her voice.

"No," Link replied, taking a step forward, "but, it looks like he's got a fire going, so you can warm up when we get there."

"Oh good." Ruto stepped after him, picking her way carefully down the thin path. As they neared the river, Link stopped suddenly, throwing out an arm to halt Ruto.

"Look!" He hissed.

The door of the small house burst open, flying partially off its hinges, and a thin man was thrown out. From where they stood, it was hard to make out details, but the huge cloaked figure that stepped out next was unmistakable.

"Is that..." Ruto whispered.

"Ikari." Link finished, "It has to be. How many people are that tall and go around with their face hidden in a cloak?"

"Yeah," Ruto's voice shook a little, "must be, and I'll bet that's Nico. What do we do?"

The man went to stand up, but his left leg gave out beneath him and he collapsed to the ground. Looking over his shoulder, his gaze suddenly stopped fixed on them. He turned back to look at the cloaked figure and appeared to say something, Link couldn't tell what over the wind and the quiet roar of the river. As the cloaked figure lunged forward, the man turned as far as he could manage without standing and pulling something from within his shirt, threw it at them.

With a roar of anger that penetrated above the sound of the river, the cloaked figure lunged forward yanking the man off the ground. Not waiting to see where the thrown object landed, Link took off running head long towards the house, Ikari, and Nico.


End file.
